


A Good Fight

by silver_etoile



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Coda, M/M, Sequel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-07
Updated: 2018-01-07
Packaged: 2019-03-01 20:58:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13303080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silver_etoile/pseuds/silver_etoile
Summary: Arthur and Merlin are coming up on a year together - a big milestone. Arthur has to do something to celebrate the occasion, and he's not going to screw up like everyone thinks.Coda toA Regular Decorated Emergency





	A Good Fight

**Author's Note:**

> This was meant to be a short little coda... but it got away from me. As usual.

Arthur woke to a clatter of silverwear in the sink followed by a soft curse. He didn’t open his eyes immediately, stretching out in the empty bed, the other side still warm, and he sighed.

“Merlin,” he murmured, blinking against the sunlight streaming through the gap in the curtain. It fell in a slit over the foot of the bed, climbing up the opposite wall, over the tiny television sitting on a bookshelf. The shelf itself sagged under the weight of the numerous books piled on it. The books continued all over the floor of Merlin’s tiny flat, and Arthur always wondered how he ever found anything.

The mattress dipped as Merlin crawled on it, smiling down at Arthur, his hair mussed, eyes crinkled.

“Do you know what today is?” Merlin asked, tracing Arthur’s collar bone with his finger.

“Tuesday?”

“It’s our anniversary.”

“No, it isn’t,” Arthur replied immediately, frowning. He was definitely sure their anniversary wasn’t for another few weeks. He’d put it in his calendar. It wasn’t something he was likely to forget considering it was the first time he’d ever actually had an anniversary with someone longer than a few months.

Merlin didn’t seem surprised by Arthur’s answer, leaning in to press a kiss to the corner of his mouth while Arthur puzzled over what exactly he meant.

“Exactly a year ago today, I was hit by a car and you came to my rescue,” he said, pulling back to gaze at Arthur, softly, fondly.

“I called the ambulance,” Arthur replied uselessly, as he always did when Merlin looked at him like that.

“Have I ever told you how glad I am you stopped that day?” Merlin asked, carding a hand through Arthur’s hair, and Arthur couldn’t help smiling.

“A few times.”

Merlin kissed him then, soft and slow, and Arthur’s heart still did that stupid flip just like the first time, almost as if he couldn’t believe this was real. He really had Merlin.

“What time is it?” Arthur asked in between kisses, pulling Merlin in closer. In moments like these, it was like the rest of the world didn’t exist, like Arthur didn’t have an eight AM meeting with a client, and they could just stay in Merlin’s flat all day.

“A little after seven,” Merlin murmured into Arthur’s mouth, licking over his bottom lip before biting down.

Grimacing, Arthur pushed Merlin back reluctantly. “I have an early meeting.”

Merlin only nodded, nuzzling Arthur’s cheek with a sigh. “You want tea? I made some.”

“Why don’t you ever have coffee?” Arthur asked as Merlin slipped off the bed, leaving him wishing he hadn’t. Gathering his willpower, Arthur followed him, stretching as he finally got out of bed. There wasn’t much space around the bed (which doubled as a couch when they weren’t sleeping), and Arthur picked his way through the books to the minuscule kitchenette in the corner where Merlin was pouring out two mugs of steaming water.

“Because you don’t need all the caffeine,” Merlin replied, dropping a tea bag in each.

Arthur took it, but he’d rather it was a cappuccino. “I’ll just get some at the office.”

Merlin merely rolled his eyes and blew on his mug. “Do you have to go home tonight?”

“I probably should get some clean clothes,” Arthur pointed out. Wearing the same outfit to the office three days in a row wasn’t likely to be noticed by many people, but Morgana would notice, and she’d definitely say something about it.

“It would be a lot easier if you just had your stuff here,” Merlin said, and Arthur smiled into his mug.

“I think I’d need a bit more space than this.” He gestured around the room, which was smaller than Arthur’s living room and kitchen in total. “Your flat is a bit ridiculous, Merlin.”

“Ridiculous is all I can afford at the moment.” Merlin shrugged. “We’re not all real estate moguls.”

“Hardly a mogul.” Arthur paused. “You could just stay with me,” he suggested, watching Merlin closely, but Merlin made a face.

“Your flat is so far away from everything,” he said. “Not that it’s not nice, though, because it’s amazing, but it takes forever to get into town.”

Arthur knew it was true, and it wasn’t as if Merlin had a car. Still.

Arthur didn’t reply to Merlin. He wasn’t sure what kind of answer he’d wanted—no, scratch that, he knew exactly what answer he’d wanted. But Merlin was right. It didn’t make sense for Merlin to move that far away from the city when he had classes and work. That didn’t stop Arthur from hoping.

“Shouldn’t you get dressed?” Merlin asked after a minute. “Unless you want to go to the meeting in just your pants? I wouldn’t mind seeing that in a meeting.”

“You wouldn’t mind seeing it any time,” Arthur pointed out, and Merlin grinned.

“True.”

Setting down his undrunk tea, Arthur turned from Merlin. He needed to focus on things other than where Merlin lived and where he wanted him to live.

*

Arthur had his coffee and the meeting had gone well. He might not be a mogul, per se, but he didn’t do too badly for himself.

“Contracts.” Morgana appeared at his doorway, sweeping in and dumping a pile of papers on Arthur’s desk.

“So much for conservation,” he said at the pile.

“Gwen wants you and Merlin to come over for dinner on Saturday,” Morgana said, ignoring his comment.

“I’ll have to ask Merlin,” Arthur replied, the same he always did when Morgana came into his office and basically declared he was coming.

“I’m sure he’ll be fine with it,” she said, waving her hand. “Everything is fine, isn’t it?”

Arthur frowned at the question. “Of course. Why wouldn’t it be?”

She shrugged, examining her nails. “We’re coming up on a year, aren’t we? It’s a big deal for you.”

Arthur was aware it was a big deal. He didn’t need Morgana to remind him. It was a miracle they’d even made it this far after how much of a prat Arthur had been in the beginning.

“I’m not going to screw it up,” Arthur said, sure that was what she was thinking.

“I said nothing of the sort,” she said with an arched eyebrow. “I think you ought to be commended, actually. You’ve never made it this far with anyone else.”

Arthur wasn’t sure she meant it as a compliment or she said it out of disbelief. Either way, he had no intentions of fucking things up with Merlin.

“We’re fine,” he assured her. “You can tell Gwen that too.”

“If I do, she’ll just start planning the wedding.”

“I’m sure she’s been planning it since the moment she met Merlin,” Arthur said. Gwen seemed to absolutely adore Merlin, much more than she’d ever liked any of Arthur’s other boyfriends.

“Oh, she was planning long before that,” Morgana assured him. “Though she refuses to give me any details. Probably afraid she’s going to jinx it.”

Arthur was sure Gwen had all sorts of ideas about his and Merlin’s hypothetical wedding. Not that Arthur hadn’t thought about it too, a few times, late at night when Merlin was asleep next to him and his chest seemed to ache with affection in a way it never had before.

“But you better come to dinner this weekend or she’ll start to worry, you know.”

Arthur did know. Gwen worried for everyone’s happiness.

“I’ll talk to Merlin,” he promised and Morgana seemed appeased for now. She straightened up from where she was perched against the desk.

“I’ll see you then.”

So much for having a choice.

*

On the weekends, Arthur could get Merlin to stay at his flat, which was a nice change from Merlin’s cramped space.

“If you don’t mind me bringing my massive pile of research I have to do,” Merlin said when Arthur asked.

“I’ll bring my pile of paperwork.”

Merlin had grinned. “It’s a date.”

Takeout Chinese food containers sat opened on the counter and Arthur’s papers sat scattered over the coffee table while he tried to get through the mountain of contracts to go over. Merlin was perched in the arm chair, two books open on his lap and a notebook he scribbled in as he pushed up the glasses sliding down his nose.

Arthur couldn’t look up at Merlin, for fear of getting distracted by how good he looked in those glasses, studiously flipping the pages in his books, sighing into the silence of the flat.

It was much quieter out here than at Merlin’s place. There were no cars rushing past the window, no sirens screeching through the brick walls. Outside, the sky was dim, stars just starting to come out.

“I wish I could skip ahead to the wise old professor part,” Merlin said after a long silence broken only by pen-scratching and flipping pages.

Arthur didn’t glance up from the contract he was trying to get through. “But then you’d miss the hot, young professor part.”

He saw Merlin shift out of the corner of his eye, setting his books on the table, marking his place with a pen in the spine. Merlin moved over to the sofa, next to Arthur, sliding an arm behind him and settling in beside him. Arthur could feel Merlin’s breath, light on his neck, and did his best not to lean into it.

Merlin’s fingers fell to Arthur’s neck, brushing against the short hairs there, and Arthur fought back a shiver.

“That’s not fair,” Arthur murmured and Merlin raised his eyebrows as his fingers continued their gentle scrape against his skin.

“What’s not?”

“You, in those glasses, it’s not fair.”

“You don’t like them?” Merlin asked, pressing a soft kiss under Arthur’s ear, letting his lips brush over Arthur’s skin, torturously gentle.

“I remember the first time I saw you in them,” Arthur said instead of answering the question, a question Merlin already knew the answer to. He still had the contract clenched in his hand, and he forced himself to toss it on the table, closing his eyes as Merlin’s lips ghosted over his neck. “That day I came to your flat to grovel for your forgiveness.”

“I don’t recall much groveling,” Merlin murmured, and Arthur smiled at the memory. It hadn’t been his finest moment, but it may have been a defining one in their relationship.

“I was too distracted by how beautiful you were in those. Just the glasses. Nothing else.”

He felt Merlin smile against his neck. He didn’t tell Merlin that he’d thought about it before then, the idea of Merlin in glasses enough to get him excited. Now that he got to see it all the time, it was almost impossible to concentrate.

Arthur turned his head, trying to catch Merlin for a kiss, but he only got his jaw as Merlin shifted, pulling back, sliding off the couch and Arthur frowned, reaching for him, but Merlin pushed his hands away.

“Nothing else, huh?” Merlin asked, a smirk playing at the corner of his mouth.

Arthur opened his mouth, to say what, he wasn’t sure, but whatever it was, he promptly forgot as Merlin pulled his shirt over his head. It left his hair mussed, but glasses intact, and Arthur shut his mouth.

Merlin’s fingers deftly pulled open his jeans, taking far too long to edge them down over his hips as Arthur swallowed down the arousal rising in him, the blood rushing to his cock as Merlin undressed, too slow, teasing him.

“Is this what you meant?” Merlin asked once he was down to his briefs, thumbs hooked into the waistband, tugging them down his hips.

The curtains were still open on the balcony, but Arthur didn’t care who was watching as Merlin shoved the pants off, and he stood before Arthur, completely nude but for the frames on his face.

Arthur let his eyes graze over Merlin’s body, from his high cheekbones, broad shoulders, the gentle V down to his hips, the pink scar on his knee leftover from the surgery.

Scooting forward, to the edge of the sofa, Merlin between his knees, Arthur reached for Merlin’s hips, leaning in to press his mouth to the gentle rise of his hip bone.

“You’re bloody gorgeous,” he murmured, hearing Merlin’s soft exhale above him as he let his tongue trace a line down to Merlin’s prick.

Merlin wasn’t quite hard yet, not like Arthur, who’d been there almost the minute Merlin started getting undressed. Arthur nuzzled his way down Merlin’s thigh, biting and sucking at the warm skin, reaching for Merlin’s cock with his hand, squeezing, rocking his palm against him as he felt Merlin hardening.

Moving up, Arthur pressed his tongue to the underside of Merlin’s prick, licking up the length, sucking at the tip. Above him, Merlin sighed and a hand came to rest on his shoulder, not gripping hard. Yet.

Arthur had done this a hundred times with Merlin, had sucked him off on the floor, against the wall, on the kitchen table, even in the bathroom at the absurdly boring Christmas party Morgana had insisted they throw this year. Next year, they definitely needed an open bar.

He’d done it a hundred times, but it always felt like the first time, the way Merlin bit his bottom lip when Arthur took him in, the small noises he made when Arthur grabbed his ass, jerking him forward. 

“Arthur,” Merlin breathed, and his fingers tightened over his shoulder.

Arthur never slowed down, sucking hard and fast, letting Merlin’s hips jerk against him, Merlin’s cock covered in spit, slick and hot against Arthur’s tongue. Arthur’s own prick throbbed against his zipper, and he could only shove a hand against it, not much relief.

“Wait, wait,” Merlin panted as Arthur swallowed against his prick, only pulling back when Merlin shoved at his shoulders.

Blinking, Arthur opened his mouth to ask what, but Merlin clambered onto his lap and kissed him, hard and deep, hands tangling in his hair, jerking Arthur’s mouth to his, a little sloppy, teeth and tongues sliding together, and Arthur groaned as his cock jumped.

“I want you to fuck me,” Merlin whispered against his lips, grinding his hips down, and Arthur couldn’t help the curse that fell from his lips.

“ _Fuck_.”

He wasn’t entirely graceful, getting his trousers undone, trying to focus between Merlin’s mouth on his, Merlin in his lap, Merlin’s hands pushing under his shirt, fingernails scraping over his back.

“Lube,” he managed to say, pushing the thought through the fog in his brain. To his surprise, Merlin reached between the couch cushions and came up with a small packet of lube and a condom. “How did that get there?”

Merlin merely shrugged as he ripped the condom open and shifted onto his knees above Arthur. “I might have stashed some around the place.”

Arthur didn’t ask where else Merlin had hidden condoms and lube, but he wasn’t complaining as Merlin rolled the condom onto his cock, the pressure doing little more than frustrating him. Reaching back, he dragged Merlin’s ass forward, thrusting his prick up against him, listening for that hitch of breath.

Arthur felt the lube, slippery and cold, covering his cock, accompanied by Merlin’s grip, slicking him up. Lifting his gaze to Merlin’s face, he pulled him in closer, kissing him, almost too soft for the way Merlin responded by sinking down on his prick, a shock of heat, tight pressure around him, and Arthur couldn’t hold back the sharp breath he took.

God, Merlin was beautiful, Arthur found himself thinking, paying more attention to the way Merlin’s mouth fell open as he moved, the slight flush along his collar bone, the way their bodies connected in an easy rocking motion. For a moment, he wasn’t focused on the pleasure coursing through his body, the clench in his gut as Merlin fucked himself, letting out soft noises into the otherwise silent flat.

Arthur wanted this. He wanted this forever. He wanted to wake up next to Merlin every morning, to argue about coffee versus tea, to watch Merlin study for his thesis, his glasses slipping down his nose.

“Arthur,” Merlin gasped, breaking Arthur from his thoughts, and he pushed his hips up, inside Merlin, watching Merlin suck in a breath, his bottom lip red from biting it too hard.

Merlin was close. Arthur could tell from the way his movements became more erratic, grinding down harder, a hand pressed to Arthur’s chest, as if he needed something to keep him grounded.

Reaching out, Arthur slid his hand over Merlin’s prick, hot and heavy against his palm. His thumb grazed over the tip, smearing the precum, and Merlin moaned easily.

“Come on, Merlin,” Arthur breathed, speeding up his movements, feeling the pressure building deep in his gut as he fucked Merlin, heat pooling in his cock. 

“Oh, shit,” Merlin said, sharp, as he came, spilling over Arthur’s shirt, hot and sticky as Arthur stroked him through it.

Merlin didn’t stop moving, though, as he came, rocking down on Arthur’s cock, hard and fast until Arthur cursed under his breath and arched off the sofa as he came.

Panting, Arthur let the feeling wash over him, ripples of pleasure echoing over his skin as he sunk down and let out a breath.

His whole body felt heavy and soft as he reached for Merlin, pulling him in by the back of his neck for a kiss that was barely lips and tongues, careful exhales. He let his other hand trace Merlin’s clavicle, thumb brushing over the dip at his shoulder.

“I love you,” he murmured against Merlin’s mouth, feeling Merlin’s replying smile as he kissed him again.

“I love you too.”

Out the balcony, the sky was fully dark now. Arthur was fully content to continue like this, with Merlin in his lap, sharing lazy kisses, Merlin’s hand carding through his hair.

“Why do you still have so many clothes on?” Merlin asked after a long minute, sliding his free hand under Arthur’s shirt.

“Because I don’t wear glasses,” Arthur replied, catching Merlin rolling his eyes.

“Maybe we should get you some.”

“Then neither of us would ever get anything done,” he pointed out, and Merlin wrinkled his nose.

“I could live with that,” he said, smiling as he leaned back into Arthur.

*

Arthur grabbed a glass from the cupboard as Gwen entered the kitchen, bending down to check on the roast in the oven.

“Almost done,” she said, straightening up and pulling out the oven mitts. She watched Arthur fill the glass with water. “Not having wine tonight?”

“Someone has to drive home,” Arthur pointed out, though he supposed they could always crash at Merlin’s flat if they had to. It was much closer, just a few tube stops away.

“Merlin stays over quite a bit, doesn’t he?” Gwen asked, and if it had been anyone else, Arthur might have taken it for fishing. Then again, from the way she was watching him, he wasn’t entirely sure it wasn’t.

“Mm,” he only replied, taking a sip. He’d never quite understood why everyone was so interested in his love life, or lack thereof previously.

Merlin was out in the living room with Morgana, probably fielding even more invasive questions on her end.

“Do you have anything special planned for your anniversary? It’s coming up.”

“I don’t know,” Arthur said, knowing it would drive Gwen crazy to think he hadn’t considered it at all. “Maybe we’ll go to dinner.”

“Arthur,” she said with a disappointed face. _Called it_. “It’s been a whole year. That’s huge!”

“I know,” he agreed.

“You have to do something more than dinner.”

“What would you suggest?”

Gwen sighed. “Something romantic. Something _thoughtful_ ,” she said with a significant glance, as though Arthur might not know what she meant by that. “Something that shows you care, that you pay attention.”

“I do pay attention.”

“You could take him to the rose garden at Queen Mary’s.”

Arthur glanced at her. “Is that where our wedding is going to be?”

She had the good grace to frown as though he’d caught her. She widened her eyes hopefully, though. “Wouldn’t it be gorgeous in the fall? All those roses, and the aisle lined with white garlands, a string quartet, a little archway at the end.”

Arthur couldn’t say he was surprised, and he was even less surprised by how much he liked the idea. Merlin in a crisp suit, fitted to his frame, black to match his glasses. He didn’t say as much to Gwen, though. He didn’t need her getting ideas. Not that she didn’t have plenty.

“What are you two doing in here?” Merlin appeared at the doorway, clutching his wine glass, probably escaping Morgana.

“Just checking the roast!” Gwen said quickly, a little too high-pitched.

Merlin arched an eyebrow at Arthur as she turned to the oven. “Arthur, maybe you could come out here.”

“You need saving?” Arthur asked, amused, following Merlin to the living room.

Morgana lounged on the chair by the window, smirking as Merlin returned. “I see you brought reinforcements.”

Arthur shook his head. “What now?”

“I was just telling Merlin about this flat that’s come available in the building,” she said as though she’d done nothing wrong.

“I like my flat,” Merlin replied simply.

“Besides,” Arthur chimed in despite the clench in his stomach at Merlin’s words. “This place is hardly much bigger.”

“It’s got two bedrooms and a separate living room,” Morgana pointed out. “Much more than that studio of his.”

Arthur couldn’t argue that, but the thought of Merlin moving to a bigger place alone made him slightly uneasy.

“I’m perfectly fine where I am,” Merlin assured her, sitting on the couch and pulling Arthur with him. “Right, Arthur?”

“Right,” he echoed, ignoring Morgana’s skeptical gaze.

“Dinner’s ready,” Gwen said from the kitchen doorway, and Arthur felt relieved to get up and help set the table.

“You okay?” Merlin asked, coming up behind Arthur as he set out the plates, a hand on his back.

“Fine,” he replied, turning and kissing him quickly.

Merlin didn’t ask again, and as they sat down to dinner, Arthur felt resolved to giving Merlin no reason to worry. No one had to worry. Least of all him.

*

“Have you seen my book on the Bourbons?” Merlin asked as Arthur stepped in the door to Merlin’s flat.

“Who?”

“Seventeenth century French,” Merlin said, digging through one of the many piles of books on the floor. “Louis the Fourteenth, the Sun King.”

“Not that I recall,” Arthur said, watching Merlin huff in the middle of his flat.

“Fuck, I wonder if I left it at your place last weekend. It’s too bad we can’t just go check.”

Arthur didn’t reply to that. “I’ll look later,” he promised him. “But for now, we’re going to be late.”

“It’s the pub,” Merlin said, distracted. “There’s no such thing as late.”

Arthur watched Merlin dig through some more books. To be honest, Arthur didn’t really feel like going to the pub tonight, but Gwaine had invited them, using the ‘but we’ve forgotten what you look like!’ excuse to make Arthur feel guilty about how much he’d been working lately.

“Ugh,” Merlin said when he couldn’t find the book. “I hate having things in two places. Why can’t you just live closer?”

Arthur’s heart thudded, dangerously close to giving him away, but he merely smiled, pulling Merlin to him and pressing a kiss to his temple.

“Let’s go to the pub, forget about the book. You’ll find it later.”

Merlin sighed, but he seemed to relax against Arthur, forcing a smile up at him.

“Fine.”

It wasn’t exactly enthusiastic, but Arthur would take it.

In the end, they were the last ones to the pub, which meant buying the next two rounds.

“We were beginning to think you’d fallen into a pit somewhere,” Gwaine said around his pint. “Or you were too busy fucking to come.”

Arthur rolled his eyes but Merlin actually smiled.

“Wouldn’t that be the reason you and Percy are always late?”

Percy didn’t say anything, but his face went a little red as Gwaine laughed.

“Touche.”

“Hasn’t it been nearly a year for you guys?” Merlin asked, taking the pint Arthur passed to him.

“Couple days ago,” Percy agreed, and Gwaine nodded in agreement.

“We should be thanking Arthur, you know. Although, he only agreed to talk to Percy about me so he could get your name when you were in the hospital.”

Merlin looked at him, surprise on his face. “You did?”

Arthur frowned at Gwaine. “I couldn’t exactly ask to see the man with the ugly scarf, could I?”

“I thought you liked that scarf.”

Arthur smiled slightly. “I do.” He didn’t say it was because it reminded him of before he’d known Merlin, before his life had changed for the better. Something he never wanted to go back to.

“Stalker,” Merlin muttered, but he wrapped his arm around Arthur’s anyway.

Gwaine raised his glass. “Here’s to the last year, the best year, and to many more anniversaries. Cheers!”

They all clinked the mugs and drank. To many more indeed.

*

Their anniversary was creeping closer and closer, and Arthur found himself getting more nervous as it did. He shouldn’t have been nervous. So it was a big step. A landmark. An accomplishment he had never quite achieved in his life. That didn’t mean anything had to go wrong.

That didn’t stop his brain from thinking it.

“What is wrong with you?” Morgana asked as Arthur stood by the counter in the break room, waiting for the coffee to brew.

“Excuse me?”

“You’ve been all antsy lately,” she said. “Quiet. I don’t like it.”

“I can’t be quiet?”

Morgana snorted and Arthur felt insulted. “Just tell me you’re not thinking of doing something stupid.”

“I have no idea what you mean,” Arthur said, dumping several packets of sugar in the bottom of his cup.

Morgana swept the packets into the trash. “Right before you broke up with Gilly, you got a cat. Even though you’re allergic to cats. Doesn’t Leon have it now?”

“Leon loves that cat,” Arthur pointed out, but he really didn’t have a leg to stand on. “And it was one time I did something stupid.”

He scowled at Morgana’s derisive laugh.

“Sure, one time,” she said, sarcastic. She waved a hand at him. “If you’re thinking about breaking up with Merlin because you’re afraid of this anniversary coming up, I will personally kill you.”

“Why do you think I’m going to mess this up?” he asked, indignant.

She gave him a sympathetic look, which only made him feel more annoyed. “You don’t have the best track record.”

“That’s enough,” he said sharply. “I don’t need your opinion on my relationship. I’m not going to do anything stupid.”

“You better not,” was all she said as she left the room and Arthur was left with his coffee and the lingering annoyance.

*

Arthur’s phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out, pausing at Merlin’s name on the screen.

“Hey,” he answered, turning towards the street and putting up a hand over his ear.

“Where are you?” Merlin asked on the other end, and Arthur hesitated, glancing down the street. 

“Just out for work,” he said as a car rushed past. Behind him, the building loomed up high above him, blocking out the sun.

“You want to meet for lunch? I have a break.”

“Arthur?” Behind him, Vivian cleared her throat.

“I can’t,” Arthur said quickly, shaking his head. “But how about dinner? I’ll come by after work.”

He only heard Merlin’s pause for a moment. “Yeah, okay, dinner,” he agreed finally.

“I’ll see you then. Love you.”

“Love you too,” Merlin replied, and Arthur hung up quickly. His heart was pounding, as if Merlin might know what he was doing.

Vivian flipped her blond curls over her shoulder and flashed him a smile. “Prepare to be amazed.”

Bracing himself, Arthur tucked his phone away and followed her inside the building.

*

“How was work?” Merlin asked, poking at his chicken, glancing at Arthur beside him on the bed. There wasn’t really space for a table in his flat.

“Same as usual,” Arthur replied. He wasn’t really hungry tonight, his stomach doing annoying little flips every time he thought about Vivian.

“What was the client you were meeting?”

Arthur looked down at his chicken. “Just showing them a building,” he muttered, and it wasn’t exactly a lie.

Merlin didn’t reply but set his plate aside.

“So this weekend is our anniversary,” Arthur said after a minute, and Merlin made a quiet noise. “Any thoughts on what we should do?”

Merlin shrugged. “I don’t know.”

Arthur glanced at him, searching his face, but he didn’t seem upset. “I was thinking we could go to dinner at that French place by my office.”

“Sure,” Merlin agreed, and Arthur thought he sounded a little disappointed.

“Unless you want to do something else?”

“Dinner’s fine,” Merlin replied, flashing Arthur a smile. “I’ll put on my Sunday best.”

“I’d rather have you in your birthday suit,” Arthur replied, leaning in to kiss Merlin. Merlin kissed back a little harder than usual, a little more possessive. “You okay?” he asked when Merlin pulled back.

“Yeah,” Merlin assured him, picking up his plate again and stabbing his chicken.

“I’ll pick you up around six then,” Arthur said, watching Merlin push the vegetables around with his fork.

“Sounds good.”

Silence fell again between them, broken by a siren out the window that faded away after a minute, leaving Arthur and his thrumming nerves as they sat there.

*

Arthur’s tie felt too tight and he tugged at it for the fifth time as he waited for Merlin to emerge from his building. He finally did, wearing a nice jacket but no tie. Arthur wasn’t sure he even owned one.

Arthur smiled at Merlin as he slid in the car. Merlin’s smile seemed tight in response, but Arthur was too nervous to really notice.

“One year,” he said as he pulled away from the curb, missing the way Merlin glanced at him.

“Yeah,” Merlin agreed quietly.

Arthur’s palms felt sweaty as they drove. Merlin stared out the window, gazing up at the buildings, and finally looking at Arthur, frowning.

“This isn’t the way to your office,” he said, and Arthur swallowed down the lump of nerves in his throat.

“Yeah, I just need to do something first.”

A few minutes later, they pulled up at a tall building and Arthur paused as he pulled off his seatbelt.

“Come on,” he said to Merlin, and Merlin did despite the way he was frowning.

“Is this work?” Merlin asked as Arthur pressed in a code to the front door.

“Not exactly,” he muttered, taking Merlin’s hand and pulling him inside. He led him to the elevator and pressed the button for the tenth floor.

“Arthur?” Merlin asked, sounding nervous now, and God, Arthur hoped he could pull this off.

“It’ll just take a minute,” Arthur said as his heart thudded against his rib cage.

The elevator dinged as it opened to a hallway filled with numbered doors. Arthur led the way, to the last door, unlocking it with a key and opening the door for Merlin.

Merlin eyed him carefully, but he went inside anyway, almost reluctantly. Arthur followed him in, stepping into the flat and flipping on the light. It lit up the large living room, complete with space for a table and a normal-sized kitchen.

Merlin glanced around, seemingly not impressed. “What are we doing here?” he asked finally as he came to a stop in the middle of the empty living room.

“Do you like it?” Arthur asked, hesitant. He could swear he could hear his own heartbeat in the silence that followed the question.

Merlin shrugged, still looking confused. “Yeah, sure, it’s nice,” he said, though his nose wrinkled. “But why are we here? Do you need to get a contract?”

“I already have it,” Arthur answered, stepping up to Merlin, taking a breath to calm the tingling anxiety deep inside. “I bought it.”

Merlin stared for a minute, confusion marring his features. “What?”

“For us,” Arthur said in a rush, the words falling from his tongue before he could wrap his brain around them. “I bought it for us. So you could—we could—move in together.” Merlin opened his mouth but said nothing. The longer he said nothing, the further Arthur’s stomach sank. Had he gotten it all wrong? “Unless you don’t want,” he said finally. “We don’t have to. I—”

“No,” Merlin interrupted him abruptly, as though coming back to life. “No, no no. Oh my God.” He let out a breath, as if he’d been holding it. “I thought maybe you were going to break up with me.”

It was Arthur’s turn to stare wordlessly, his mind slowly absorbing what Merlin had just said. “Why would I ever do that?”

Merlin made an incomprehensible noise, coupled with a jerky shrug. “Because you’ve never had a…” He trailed off with a guilty look on his face.

“Jesus, have you been talking to Morgana?” Arthur felt his heart drop. No wonder Merlin had been acting so weird. And it probably hadn’t helped that Arthur had been acting so nervous.

“Everyone talks about it.” Merlin bit his bottom lip.

Arthur rubbed his face with a sigh. This wasn’t going at all how he’d planned. “Merlin, I never want to break up with you,” he said seriously, stepping up to him, placing a hand on his neck. For a second, he hadn’t felt nervous. For a second, he’d only been confused, but the nerves were back as he stood so close to Merlin, gazing into his eyes. He swallowed. “In fact,” he said, reaching into his pocket, fingers clenching around the velvet box there, taking it out and holding it out to Merlin. “I want to be with you for the rest of my life, if you’ll have me.”

For a second, Merlin only stared at the box, eyes going wide, forehead creased. “Holy shit.”

Arthur smiled, the nerves bursting out in laugh. “Just the eloquent response I was hoping for.”

Merlin’s eyes moved from the box to Arthur’s, a smile splitting his face. “I’ll have you, you idiot,” he said finally, hugging Arthur tight, arms around his neck.

Arthur was floating, his chest as light as a feather as Merlin pulled back, still grinning like an idiot, mirrored by Arthur’s face as he cracked open the box to reveal a gold band.

“It’s perfect,” Merlin said as Arthur slid the ring on his finger. “You’re perfect.”

“Hardly,” Arthur replied, admiring the way it looked on Merlin’s hand, and he didn’t think he’d ever been this happy in his entire life.

“That’s why I love you,” Merlin assured him, kissing him softly. Arthur wrapped his arms around Merlin. Everything _was_ perfect, just in this moment.

At length, they broke apart and Merlin turned to the apartment. “We’re really gonna live here?”

“It’s close to work, close to your school. And it has a great view of the park.”

Merlin grinned, turning back to him. “So who’s going to tell Gwen?”

“Maybe we’ll just let her suffer for a couple weeks,” Arthur said, laughing as Merlin swatted him. “Or we could tell her tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow’s good,” Merlin agreed, leaning into Arthur, grinning into the kiss.

Standing in the empty apartment, Arthur was sure this was only the beginning of something amazing, and as Gwaine had said, many more anniversaries to come.

*

FIN.


End file.
